On this trip, we decided to leave a few things to chance, and Fort Worth was one such place. There’s this service that I found through Gala Darling, which allows you to find “Bed and Breakfasts” in whatever city you’re visiting. We looked up a place, and found the cutest spot!
I mean, how cute is this?!?!

They have a couple of kitties on the premises too, so it helped us not miss our own kids so much.
Rando and Donna, the owners of our little cottage also have a little folder laid out for their guests, which has pamphlets of all kinds of things to do in Fort Worth, which was good, because we did little to no research at all. We WERE meeting one of our beer friends later that evening, and we found a pamphlet for the Fort Worth Stockyards, so we decided to check it out.

We were in need of some good veggies after the drive from Austin ( ~190 miles), so before settling in at the Stockyards, we needed lunch. Our friend suggested this awesome vegan place called Spiral Diner & Bakery. You know that we’re not vegan, but I’ve got to tell you, at this point, we were CRAVING veggies, and Spiral Diner was spot on. We split this amazing wrap called Sweet Luv’Us Hummus Wrap.
It had everything! It was essentially a burrito that had a layer of baked sweet potato & hummus, then stuffed with broccoli, cucumber, avocado, salad greens, spicy pecans, and tahini dressing. It was perfect to split, and we were on our way to the Stockyards!

Sometimes they have train rides running, which was what we initially went down there for, but it turns out they weren’t running that day. So if you do happen to go down there, call first, or check the schedules! There were a bunch of cute shops, lots of historical landmarks (I was particularly interested in the Temple Grandin star!), and stables that you’re allowed to walk through that had horses, bulls, chickens, and camels. Just don’t try to pet or feed the horses! This one was particularly “friendly.” Angel looks slightly nervous, doesn’t he! With good reason, to be sure!

Even though we didn’t get to ride the train, we WERE able to see the bull run! With the bull run, they don’t really run, because that would be dangerous for the public. A couple of cowboys escort bulls down the main drag, walking, but it’s still quite a sight to behold! These are huge, magnificent animals, and with one twist of a docile head, they could potentially impale you. Absolutely nuts!

We still had some time to explore before meeting our friend, and she suggested to hit up a bar called The Bearded Lady. They had a fantastic beer selection, and really great fried green tomatoes!

Our bartender Sarah was a gem, and we hung out long enough to be able to talk to the owners. Let me tell you – they were so enthusiastic about their business, and the craft beer industry, and how to improve their processes. It really was great getting to talk to them a little bit.

Just a little aside here – Angel and I took many of our local beers with us on this USA trip of ours. Craft Beer, to us, means sharing – and I think that sentiment is pretty baseline for any Craft Beer Lovers out there. So, in situations like this, where we had an opportunity to talk to business owners or brewers, and make that genuine human connection, we would bust out one (or a couple) of our bottles for them. It really is gratifying to be able to share with others – it’s like perpetuating Christmas all year ’round!

Talking to the locals can get you places – GOOD places – that you might overlook on Yelp. Always keep that in mind! Sarah at The Bearded Lady, gave us the heads up on The Boiled Owl where all the employees go after their shifts to chill out and have a brew. It was also rumored that they had a highly coveted HEAVY METAL beer called BLAKKR.

I love brewers who love heavy metal. Kindred spirits, right there, and the beer was fantastic!

I could end right here, but I’d be leaving out THE best part about this trip. Coincidentally, I got absolutely NO PHOTOS of this experience, because I was beyond excited. We met up with a friend who took time out of TAKING HER FINALS(!!) to take us on a field trip to none other than….

It was the first time I had seen radishes that looked like red carrots. I saw a ton of CHEESE! They have a full on butcher. They have balsamic vinegars and olive oils like WHOA. TONS of specialty items like Not Ketchup. Bakery. Florist.

BEER! They had a damn good selection of local Texas beers, and beers in general. This place was amazing. It also sucks the money right out of your wallet – no joke!

This place is the best grocery store that I have ever been to. It beats Whole Foods, I’m sorry but it does, in my humble opinion of course. It was absolutely amazing, and I’ll be forever indebted to our guide for that.

We got home with our spoils, and enjoyed some of them before getting to bed early. We had a super early start the next morning, because we were making our way to Colorado, 876 miles away, where we would be on our actual tenth anniversary day, May First. May Day!

Having just spent two weeks touring all the Central Market stores, I agree with you completely – amazing amazing amazing. I love that each store has a team of “Foodies” whose sole job is to help customers explore new tastes and find interesting products.